Misfits of Vernada ~Wattys2016~

XXXVII

Moon didn't know what to feel. She wanted to curl in a ball and cry, she wanted to flight and slash, she wanted to fly as far away as she could. So many emotions conflicted inside her; grief, rage, anger, sorrow, sadness, horror, fear.

She stood there, and the fight battled around her. She barely registered it, barely registered Zappy joining his parents, barely knew what was going on around her. Tears dripped from her eye, wetting the ground already damp with blood and melted snow.

'H- he was proud of me. I thought he hated me.' The tears continued, and as they did her bloodlust faded. She no longer wanted to rip and fight, to feel blood seeping out under her claws. She just wanted it all to stop.

A shrill scream broke through her grieving consciousness. She glanced up to see a small red dragon, pinned under a large Sharpshooter. On a second glance, she realized it was Cricket.

'What's he doing here?' she thought. 'He was at the hatchling caves.' Then, glancing up, she realized the hatchling caves were just beyond them. Now that she wasn't fighting the Bloodlust, she could see the cliffs rising up behind the battle, the waterfall cascading down beside the entrance, and the lake, red from the blood of the slain, the river leading off it a pinkish colour.

A scream from Cricket caused her to look up again, and leap into action. As she did, she heard someone call her name.

"Moon! Help!" It was Boulder, Firelily's nest mate. He too was pinned under a much larger dragon, but Moon couldn't help him yet. She gave the Sharpshooter pinning Cricket down a blow with her Cudlet, and he crumpled to the ground.

Cricket scrambled to his feet, his eyes wide. The red on his scales – which only showed in a small spot when Moon had last seen him – covered all most all his body.

"Moon?" he asked, staring at her. "I-is that you?"

'Of course it is. How many purple dragons are there?' she thought, but realized how different she must look. She was much larger than when he had last seen her, and scars covered his body.

"Its me," she said, smiling at him. He grinned, wrapping her in a huge hug.

"I missed you. You look like you've been fighting! You have to tell me everything, okay? Did you kill a dragon? Where did you get the scale 'round your neck from? Why –"

"No!" A heart-rending cry interrupted his enthusiastic talk. Moon turned to see Firelily, standing over the limp body of Boulder. Tears dripped from her eyes as she dropped to her knees.

Moon moved towards her, guilt filling her. She could have saved him. She could have done something.

"Firelily. I- I'm so –" she began, but Firelily looked up, and the anger – no loathing – in her eyes made Moon step back.

"You could have saved him," she hissed, and the anger in her voice hurt Moon as much as a wound. "You could have done something! I hate you! I HATE YOU!" Firelily screamed.

"'Lily, please! I'm sorry."

"Sorry doesn't bring him back, does it?" the orange dragon demanded. "You're the reason he's dead. You are the reason my brother is dead! You killed him! You killed him!" And she leaped into the air, still screaming over and over again, "You killed him! You killed him!"

Moon watched her go, helpless to do anything. The problem was, Firelily was right. Moon could have saved Boulder. She could have saved the reunion with Cricket for later. It was her fault he was gone. She had killed him.

She looked down at his limp body, and anger filled her. Anger against the war, against Fang, and Obsidian and Tornado and everyone else who wanted to keep fighting. Didn't they see? Didn't they understand that families were being torn apart?